Sunday, May 27, 2012

Could it be that the sandwich gods have heard my prayers and delivered unto me a place to get quick, fresh and tasty sandwiches to go (other than Subway)? This is going where the NY Falafel Bar used to be, on Austin St. down near Ascan.

Thursday, May 24, 2012

A reader told me that the new establishment replacing Q Bistro on Ascan will actually be a wine and cheese bar that happens to have Irish ownership, quite different from an Irish bar. And that the owners also already have one or two other establishments.

This sounds like a nicer fit to me for that really nice spot on Ascan. I look forward to trying it out when it opens. Sounds like it could be a really nice place to spend some time with friends. I hope they have an open-front restaurant or tables in the front, though not sure they are able to in that spot. But it would sure be nice to have some wine and cheese and enjoy the beautiful weather this time of year, especially in that laid-back location.

Reposting this from my Facebook page.. let me know if you're the owner or know who is, thanks...

Beautiful little dog found at the intersection of Metro and Woodhaven Blvd. A teenage boy said she followed him from Jamaica Ave. She has an unregistered microchip and is well-trained. Poor girl probably escaped from her yard. If anyone has any information about this pup's owner, please inbox me!

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

I saw on the Queens Neighbors message boards that the former Q Bistro restaurant space on Ascan is going to be turned into an Irish bar of some sort. The person who posted the information said this is from workmen at the site.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

NYC's 5 Boroughs (May 12, 2012) -The 5 boroughs are about to become a little greener, thanks to the Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation Alliance’s Second Annual Tree Giveaway Event on Sunday, May 20th from 1 to 3 PM in Forest Hills.

Citywide residents will have the chance of adopting one (and possibly more) of 245 trees in MacDonald Park on Queens Boulevard and 70th Avenue, Forest Hills. To make this event possible, Four Borough Neighborhood Preservation Alliance (4BNPA) partnered with MillionTreesNYC and New York Restoration Project (NYRP). Toyota is a lead sponsor, and lead partners include PlaNYC, and NYC Parks.

Adopted trees are required to be planted on private property in the five boroughs. To tie into environmental history, 4BNPA is offering some unique native tree species. Native species will be Eastern Redbud, Florida Dogwood, Northern Red Oak, and Bald Cypress. Serviceberry and Sargent Crabapple are hybrids, but can be classified as natives, in regard to their environmental benefits. Japanese Maple and Amur Maackia will also be available, but are not native. Some trees are flowering, and their maturity heights will vary. Potted trees will be 6 to 10 feet tall, and will come with planting and maintenance handouts. Tree adoption certificates designed by Forest Hills resident Steve Goodman will be distributed, so adopted trees can acquire a sense of identity and education. Trees will be named after former Forest Hills notables, historic street names, and landmarks.

This spring, NYRP in partnership with citywide community groups is donating 5,000 trees at 30 giveaway events, with ten in Queens. NYRP began coordinating giveaways in 2008, and has since coordinated over 50 events non-inclusive of this season. Inspiration stemmed from the understanding that MillionTreesNYC was focused on greening public spaces, but private homes, religious institutions, and community gardens also represent a great portion of the city, and therefore merit tree-planting.

On September 16, 2010, parts of Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island experienced a rare macroburst. Joseph Bruno of the NYC Office of Emergency Management reported 3,113 fallen trees in Queens alone. Event Coordinator Michael Perlman stated, "As Queens vice president of 4BNPA and a native Forest Hills resident, I documented the devastation locally, and sent a proposal to NYRP, and developed a bond. 4BNPA agreed to host its first tree giveaway event on June 12, 2011, and donated 100 trees to property owners. With the volunteerism of its members and Rego-Forest Preservation Council, this helped restore the natural and historic beauty of Forest Hills, as well as beyond. Following last year’s success, I decided to coordinate another tree giveaway event this spring."

Perlman added, "Many people did not realize the benefits of our trees until some of which were a century-old succumbed in seconds. Trees convey life, beauty, contribute to environmental sustainability, and enhance property values. MacDonald Park was selected as the event site, in order to shed light upon a concentrated space that lost sixty mature trees during the tornado, and to initiate memories of a productive community event." 4BNPA agrees that New York City needs to preserve its existing tree canopy and plant more trees, but some property owners degrade neighborhood aesthetics and environmental benefits by cutting down trees in the name of development-related “progress.”

On May 20th, those who wish to adopt a tree should line up in MacDonald Park before 1 PM in front of either an online reservation table or a first-time registration table. The first 50 percent of applicants can now reserve their tree online at www.nyrp.org/queenstrees

Boardwalk Empire is filming today at Metropolitan Ave. & 72nd Rd., according to the blog On Location Vacations.

And local reporter Nick Hirshon says on his Twitter feed that the shoot will be taking place at Eddie's Sweet Shop.

It sure seems like Forest Hills has been getting its share of screen time lately, what with Blue Bloods filming here all the time, and then Baby Big Shot's big shoot on Austin St. just a couple of weeks ago. I wonder what it is that Hollywood likes about our neighborhood? Sometimes it's obvious - HBO's miniseries Mildred Pierce reportedly chose to shoot some scenes in Forest Hills Gardens because the architecture and natural beauty of the neighborhood resembled Glendale, California during the 1930's.

This is kinda cool.... A mural has been put up in the Windsor building's garage showing historic scenes of Forest Hills. See what you can do with an otherwise ordinary space if you put your mind to it? Click on the photos for a larger view.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Just looking at the neighborhood now and I am starting to get a positive feeling again. For a little while there, things were looking a little dicey. But here's some of the recent developments that have me optimistic again:

The closing of the cheap trinkets store on Austin St., near Ascan. I usually hate to find pleasure in other people's misfortunes, but in this case I have to make an exception. I think a business that opens in a neighborhood has a responsibility to that neighborhood. If they expect local residents to shop there, they should be a responsible citizen of where they are doing business. The fact that they chose to open a cheap novelty store that belongs more on Canal Street than it does on Austin St., and in one of the most upscale parts of Forest Hills, near the corner of Ascan, showed a disrespect for the neighborhood they were hoping to do business in. I am very glad this business has closed in just two months.

The new Greenmarket in front of the Post Office. The starting up of a new Greenmarket this summer has been greeted with an overwhelming amount of positive feeling by the readers of this blog, and I'm sure by many other members of the neighborhood. Finally, finally, it looks like Forest Hills will join so many other wonderful NYC neighborhoods in having a successful, thriving Greenmarket. I liked the post on this blog that pointed out that other Queens neighborhoods could also use one, especially low-income neighborhoods whose residents don't have access to fresh, quality, wholesome food. I totally agree. But I think there's nothing wrong with Greenmarkets being in both locations. And I think the reason Forest Hills was selected is because it is so close to so many forms of public transportation, so hopefully many nearby residents of Queens will also benefit. And, as a result, this should boost foot traffic in our neighborhood - not bad for local retailers on the Sundays when the Greenmarket is open.

Former Q Thai Bistro being renovated. I don't know what is going into this new space — I have heard possibly a wine bar. But I am glad to see this excellent location is going to be used again. It is one of the nicest, most laid back parts of our main shopping area. And I glanced at it and it looks like they are doing a nice job redesigning it so far.

Monday, May 7, 2012

1) Biggest issue facing all of us, sooner or later: The European Crisis. That economic crisis is still not over no matter how many times the media says it is. I think what we are now seeing is a backdoor crisis taking the form of political pressures triggered by the economic ones. The political instability will probably create a lot of economic volatility for years to come in markets throughout the world. And, it may very well eventually put the brakes on our own economic recovery as one European country after another goes into Recession.

What could have prevented this? More government spending there, not less. Britain has now entered a double-dip recession, it's first since the 1970s. Thanks to David Cameron's dumb decision to cut back on government spending, his policy of austerity. Economics 101: You spend your way out of Depression and Recession. That is the absolute worst time for government austerity. And now they are seeing the results.

One of the scariest developments from this crisis is something I just read about that has been barely reported. Greece, which has been forced to accept austerity because of Germany's financial lending/recovery plan, just split its vote between far left and far right politicians in its most recent election as a protest against the Depression it now finds itself in. Hmmm, what does that remind me of?

2) Most unimportant news story you'll hear tons about over the next several weeks: The second alleged "underwear bomber plot." Please... Airline travel is so much safer than just driving your car around the block. And I know it's not politically correct to say so, but do we really need billions of dollars spent on counter-terrorism and wars to find out about some kook who puts explosives in his underwear? There's a point where we act just as crazy as the "terrorists." Spending billions of dollars to go after the couple of thousand people around the world who might want to down an airliner is pretty crazy.

Do we spend billions of dollars to stop you from eating those Doritos you're munching on while you read this? I have news for you, you have a million times more of a chance of developing heart disease from those Doritos and dying of a heart attack then you do of dying on a plane that crashed because of an underwear bomber.

3) Presidential Election 2012: As the presidential election starts to gain steam I've heard a lot of grumbling from those on the left about President Obama's performance. (Needless to say, the Right has been grumbling since Day One, or rather shouting, so nothing new there.) My take? I have never changed my mind about President Obama. When he came into office I thought he just may well be one of our greatest presidents ever. And his first few years have done nothing but affirm that in my mind.

There is only one single thing I would have liked him to do differently. Somehow get the public option for health care passed. I understand he didn't have the votes, but still. There had to be some way to give us another option to compete against those insurance companies.

Otherwise, every single decision President Obama has made has been sound and showed the quiet wisdom I would have expected. From his rescuing us from the second Great Depression (remember, we were hanging on by a thread when he took office, thanks to W. spending his time clearing brush on his ranch while the economy collapsed), to the rescue of the automobile industry to the breathtaking operation to get Bin Laden to his position on human rights, to his appointment of actually intelligent people to the Supreme Court, oh, I can go on and on and on but don't have the time :(.

4) Interesting reading: Robert Caro's latest book on Lyndon Johnson, "The Passage of Power." I am reading an excerpt from it in The New Yorker from some weeks ago and it is just gripping, especially the portion about the Kennedy assassination as told through the perspective of LBJ. Here's the link to it online, but you have to be a subscriber :( : http://archives.newyorker.com/?i=2012-04-02#folio=032

5) Great New Television Show: Girls on HBO. I'm a guy and I love Girls. What a great show. Do catch it if you get a chance...

It's a no-brainer that we should have a Greenmarket here in FoHi like so many other neighborhoods in New York City do. Any local official who comes out against the proposal in order to "protect local retailer business" is full of crap. Their first concern should always be the public. And the public in Forest Hills would benefit greatly from having access to all of the fresh, quality, wholesome food that Greenmarkets in New York City offer.

Did anyone manage to catch a glimpse of the Super Moon Saturday night? When I was out, it was too cloudy to see anything. Luckily, Friday night was clear and I managed to snap these shots - not quite as good as it would have been Saturday, but still pretty cool...

A reader has told me that there will be a public hearing on Wednesday, May 9th, to discuss the possibility of bringing a Greenmarket to the area in front of the Forest Hills Post Office on Queens Blvd.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

A reader says that a boutique is going into the space formerly occupied by the Sister Unn's performance artist group. The reader saw them hanging clothes from this designer in there: http://www.lnaclothing.com/